Movie Review: Wimpy Kid Should Stop Writing in His Diary

Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Rodrick Rules movie poster, property of Twentieth Century Fox.

Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Rodrick Rules AWFUL

Diary of a Wimpy Kid was actually kind of a cute movie.  I never got a chance to see it in theaters, but I saw the movie on HBO recently and I thought it was a pretty funny and heartwarming kiddie movie.  It had a lot of spunk and quirkiness, which made all of its wildly improbable hijinks not only tolerable but endearing.  However, its sequel Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Rodrick Rules was quite the opposite.  It just plain sucked.

The movie is about Greg Heffley (Zachary Gordon) being forced to bond with his brother Rodrick (Devon Bostick) by their constantly clueless parents (played by Steve Zahn and Rachael Harris).  They seem to be oblivious to the fact that Rodrick is unnecessarily cruel to his younger brother, and seem to think that leaving the two of them alone for the weekend will make them be best friends.  It doesn’t work out that way of course, and we get to see the two of them fighting annoyingly for two hours.

Rodrick’s character was juvenile and obnoxious in the first movie as well, but you only saw him in small doses.  In this one, he’s given a much bigger role and that is unfortunate.   I can’t stand Rodrick.  And Greg’s character isn’t much more lovable.  Although you sympathize with him because he’s little, and gets picked on, and blah blah blah… he’s not really a very nice kid.  The whole first movie was about him realizing that his friendship with Rowley (Robert Capron) was more important than being a popular middle schooler, yet in this sequel he has forgotten that lesson and continues to be the worst friend possible to poor Rowley in hopes of being seen as cool.  He embarrasses Rowley in a YouTube video hoping it will make him cool.  He forces Rowley to lie about a party Rodrick threw in order for his brother to think he’s cool.  He won’t do a magic show with Rowley because he doesn’t think the girl of his dreams (Holly Hills played by Peyton List) will find it cool... and on and on and on.

Newsflash:  You aren’t cool Greg Heffley.  And neither are you, Rodrick.  You are both petty and annoying and I’m tired of watching your ridiculously contrived antics on the big screen.  Thank you, and please shut up.

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